dotHack The Legend of the Twilight Angel
by Darien Leonheart
Summary: Seraph was once the strongest Wavemaster... Until a white monster deleted his character and put his friend into a coma. Now, as a Blademaster, he seeks to right what went wrong in 'the World' while trying to mend his own heart.
1. Prelude

A little note to the readers: 1) I don't own .hack, only the games. 2) Some of these names are names from a message board RPG that was abandoned by its owner; so give them credit for good names. 3) I came up with the character name Seraph after looking at a picture of a seraphim in my church (Hence Seraph the Forgotten Angel). I didn't take it from Matrix: Reloaded (I'd never even seen half of the first one before I began writing this) 4) This story occurs exempting the fact that Kite got the bracelet. This is as if Kite never existed.

The Chaos Gate, in the midst of the buildings, swung around as three golden rings revealed a tall man wearing a black trench coat over a black shirt. He wore long black pants, along with large multi-buckled, black boots. A scar-like mark was on his right cheek, spaced under one of his deep blue eyes. He moved his long, black hair from out of his face, scanning the area. His sword was sheathed diagonally behind his back, at an angle to where he could easily wield it with his right hand. He walked forward a few steps and stopped.

"Mac Anu... I remember it well... Too well..." He shook his head and looked down the small steps. "No need to get nostalgic. Let's find someone who needs to level up as much as me..." The man said as he walked down the remaining steps from the gate and moved slowly towards the bridge. He looked to one of the railings and saw a Wavemaster leaning against it towards the middle. She was wearing a large light blue hat decorated with a darker blue and orange, also with a small red jewel at the middle. The hat split into two ends that fell down the sides of her face and went down to her stomach. She had on a light blue shawl around her neck and shoulders and over her long-sleeved light blue top, and also decorated with a darker tone of blue. Her pants were the same as her top, long and light blue with different decorations of darker blues. An orange bow went around her waist and tied up into an actual bow at the front. Her shoes were light blue as well, and the bottoms were dark blue. She had a basic Wavemaster wand under her arm, and was staring off into the water. Suddenly, she got off the railing and fiddled around with her wand, her dark red hair swinging around her neck.

"I wonder if anyone'll let little old me go with them..." she said under her breath. The man walked up to her and cleared his throat. She turned and looked up, her passionate red eyes beaming at him.

"Well, looking for a partner?" the man asked, his sword clinking on his back. The little girl moved her wand to her right hand and nodded her head.

"Yup. Sure am..." she replied. The man looked silently at the surrounding players, who were paying no attention. Confused, the girl tilted her head to the side, staring strangely at the man.

"Okay... Well, I don't usually do this kind of thing, but are you willing to join me in getting some experience?"

"Sure!" she replied, straightening her head and smiling at the man. Surprised at her exuberance, the man half-smiled for a second and immediately reverted to his cold look.

"Well, do you have a specific place you want to go..?" he asked, a hint of expectation in his voice.

"Nope. You choose..." she responded, still smiling. The man smiled again, but not as badly as before. He shook his head and turned around, waving his hand at her. As he moved on, she hastily followed, both heading toward the chaos gate. "By the way," she broke the silence as they went up the steps, "My name is Solange. What's yours..?"

"It's... Seraph..." he said silently, adding in with a bit of sadness, "The Forgotten Angel..."

"Wow... that's too bad..." she replied, looking down at the ground as they got to the gate. He stopped before the swinging blue portal and looked back at her, wondering about what she meant. "So where are we going?" He turned again, facing the gate.

"A place that's good for beginners... Bursting Passed Over Aqua Field." He replied. She looked up at him. "I went there once... with a friend..." She smiled at hearing this new info.

"Was this a good friend..?"

"Yeah, but that was a long time ago..."

"Is there a rare item!"

"Who knows... Only one way to find out, though…" He walked closer to the gate and looked at Solange. "Well, let's go." He faced the gate and said, "Bursting Passed Over Aqua Field." When he finished, they both disappeared from the town and appeared in a vast grassy field, populated by some scattered trees and strange stone landmarks. Four large, yellow discs were rotating slowly in place around them. "Do you know the basics of fighting?"

"Yup! Sure do!" she replied, and began to walk towards one of the discs. Smiling with a 'Thank God' face, he followed her. The disc began to spin rapidly and two goblins appeared. Solange stood in place, chanting, while Seraph drew his sword. "It's time to rumble..! Gan Don!" she said as a large boulder came from the sky and smashed one of the goblins. Seraph dashed forward and took one swing at the goblin, tearing it in half.

Seraph walked over to Solange, asking, "Where did you learn that one..?" She held her wand up.

"It's a wand that teaches two earth magic attacks." She responded. He chuckled quietly.

"So, you like big items?"

"Rare and powerful items." Seraph laughed again and began running to another portal.

"Let's kick some ass!" He yelled as the second disc revealed three goblins. He positioned his sword in the air and slammed it down. "Revolver!" he yelled as he cleaved the goblin in two. Solange summoned another boulder that took out the other goblins. After finishing, she ran to the other disc, revealing two goblins and a large crab-like monster. Seraph ran to the crab, using the Revolver on it as well, while Solange slammed the goblins with her wand. The fourth disc revealed only one goblin, which Solange defeated with two swings of her wand. She looked at Seraph and smiled.

"That was fun! Now let's go to the dungeon!" she yelled exuberantly. She ran towards the entrance to the dungeon, Seraph following behind. Room after room, they took down each monster, getting minor treasure from each one, until the got to the last floor. They reached the Gott statue, both with half of their health left. Seraph opened the chest and found two Grunty Dolls. Seraph gave the dolls to Solange, who took them happily.As they left the statue,everythingaround them flashed into inverted colorand, after a few seconds, became black. Then, they appeared on a floating island, with smashed parts of towers and castles floating around it. They looked around.

"What the hell..?" Seraph exclaimed. Just then, the place flashed and a white monster appeared. It was holding a large red wand and looked human-like.

"What is that thing, Seraph..!" Solange asked, shaking in fear. Seraph looked down, clenching his fist. Then he looked back up, drew his sword, and dashed at the monster. Slashing at the beast, he yelled, "Damn you! Because of you..! I lost her..! DIE!" All of his slashes either missed or had no effect. He used his Revolver on it, but still didn't land a hit. It then blasted him back, past Solange. Solange, thinking maybe she could help, summoned a boulder to hit the beast, but caused no harm to it. The demon flew over to her and slashed her with its wand. She fell to the ground and floated into the air. The red wand appeared behind her as Seraph got up. Seeing what had happened, he charged at the monster.

"No! Not again!" he yelled, still sprinting. At once, he heard a loud ringing noise in his ears. He stopped, holding his ears. "No, damn it! Not this time!" he yelled as he threw his sword at the wand, knocking it to the ground, and dropping Solange to the ground. The ringing stopped, and he ran to Solange. He held her up on his leg. She slowly looked towards Seraph.

"What... happened..?" she asked weakly. He smiled, laying her on the ground slowly.

"It'll be okay... I'll take care of it..." he responded. She turned her head, facing the monster, which had just picked the wand back up, pointing it at Seraph. Seraph noticed that a ring had suddenly appeared on the ring finger of his right hand, glowing a white light. He stared at it as a strange bracelet formed around his wrist. Instantly, a girl's voice resonated in the air, saying, "Use it. Save her." Seraph looked around, trying to find the sound. He then looked back at the beast. It had formed a blue bracelet around its wrist as well, which grew larger each second. Seraph, finding it as a last resort, held up his hand. His arm began to shake as it was pulled into the air, the ring shining a deep blue color. The bracelet began flashing, and symbols appeared all over him. Seraph's clothes started flashing ones and zeros, and shaded into a deep blue. His coat became a pure white cape, his pants an ocean blue, and his shirt a lighter blue. His body then sprouted two large wings in the back, which folded outward and opened up. He then flapped his wings and floated into the air, the bracelet around his wrist enhancing and growing, just like the demon's. It grew larger, and finally pointed at the demon, firing a strange beam towards it. The demon, barely managing a dodge, fell to the ground and got back up. Seraph slowly descended, landing on his feet, the bracelet still around his wrist. He looked at the bracelet and then looked at the fiend.

"Now, you will leave us be, or get a taste of your own medicine, you bastard." As if understanding, the demon disappeared into a large void. Seraph walked over to Solange, who had fainted, picked her up, and lifted his left hand. He fiddled his fingers around a bit as if on a keyboard and three gold rings surrounded them, taking them back to the field. As soon as the rings disappeared and they were back in the grassland, he slowly laid her across the grass. She woke up, looked at Seraph with her eyes halfway open.

"Thank you, guardian angel..." she said as she closed her eyes again, chuckling softly. Seraph stood up and took off the ring. When the ring slipped off, his clothes turned black again, the cape turning back into a trench coat, and the bracelet disappeared. Solange opened her eyes completely again and got up. "What happened to him..?"

"To who..?" Seraph asked, enclosing his hand around the ring, keeping it from her sight. Solange looked around for a few seconds and then looked at Seraph.

"Hm..." she replied, "Well, that was a strange event."

"It's not an event. It's something that doesn't belong in this game. But we'd better get out of here before it returns."

"Yeah, let's go now…" she agreed as she gated out. Seraph nodded and looked around slowly, his sword loosely hanging in his right hand. He sheathed the blade and sighed.

"I'll find you... I know your still in the game... Kathleen..." He looked at the small ring and moved it about in his palm. After a minute, he pocketed it and scoffed, gating out.


	2. Revelations

Seraph appeared before the chaos gate of Mac Anu. It had been a few days since he met up with Mireille and found the white monster that had almost put his new friend into a coma. Mireille had stayed in contact with Seraph, but only by mail. She somehow injured her arm to breaking point. She could only email Seraph due to circumstances. He, himself, stayed away from 'the World' because of what happened. He decided that he wouldn't log in unless he had a good reason.

Seraph had returned, this time, with two reasons: One, to find information on the ring that he received in the dungeon, and two, to meet up with an old friend. He walked over the bridge and turned left, heading for the weapons shop. He walked into the small window area, staring at the shop owner, face grim.

The owner looked back and said, "Gonna buy something, or should I get the Crimson Knights for you?"

"I'll take a Cheeseburger and fries, hold the mayo..." Seraph replied. The owner laughed and held out his hand. Seraph's face changed to one of happiness, shaking the owner's hand. "I guess you found another job... And I thought you'd be flipping burger patties for good."

"Not a good pay for someone my age. Besides, The CC Corp. offered me a corner office and free lunches. I can't complain." The owner bent over behind his counter for a few seconds and came back up. "Here's the sword you ordered. It's the Dogman's Sword, right?"

"Yup! You have a good memory, 'old man'." Seraph responded as he unsheathed his old sword and slid the Dogman's Sword in. "I also want to sell this one..." He handed over the Basic Sword and the owner gave him a meager handful of money in return. "That's it?!"

"Yeah, that's all there is. Prices have lowered since you left. Someone started a riot because the costs went way up in most of the servers. Luckily, there wasn't any fighting, but the bickering lasted for days. They finally negotiated with the Knights and lowered the prices. And as you know, you can only sell an item at half of its price in a shop."

"Geez, that's a bit over-board... Things have changed..."

"Yeah, well, don't call me 'old man' anymore, okay? It gets kind of annoying coming from my son..."

"Sorry, but don't tell anyone my relation to you. It'd get pretty strange. Well, thanks again." Seraph walked away from the store, heading for the bridge. As he was coming up, a Heavy Blade wearing a camouflage-green sleeve-less jacket with a gold-yellow plate armor covering his chest, legs, and his right arm. Keeping with the theme, his pants were of the same hue of green as his jacket. He had brown eyes and short, dark brown hair that spiked up a bit. He was about an inch shorter than Seraph was, looking about 18 years old. The Heavy Blade ran up to Seraph, stopped, and stuck out his tongue. Seraph grabbed his tongue, and drew his sword.

"I'm sowwy!" he tried to say.

"I guess you did want your tongue cut off!!" Seraph retorted. After a bit of quiet, he began laughing and let go of the boy's tongue. The boy wiped his tongue off.

"Is that how you always greet your friends, Keith?" the boy asked. Seraph twitched, and moved his blade up to the boy's neck.

"My name in here is Seraph," he said as he sheathed his sword, "And what are you called now..?"

"It's still Solo Maxwell. At your services, Guardian Angel." Solo bowed as he replied.

"Forgotten... Forgotten Angel, Solo." Solo gave Seraph a weird look and stood straight. "Now, do you have your translator ready?"

"Yup! Sure as hell do!!" Solo replied as he fiddled around with his sword. "I'm ready!" Seraph held out the ring in his palm. Solo looked closer at it, then whiled away at the air. After a few moments, he stopped, donning a dumbfounded look. He looked up at Seraph and said, "I... can't translate it." Solo put his sword on his back. "The figures seem like a mix between Celtic, German, and either Japanese or Chinese."

"So, it's inajumbledtext. Well, thanks anyway. See ya." Seraph began to walk away. Immediately, Solo drew his blade and sped in front of Seraph, pointing the sword at his throat.

"Hey, I think you forgot our deal!! I translate and you join my party!!" He said threateningly.

"You didn't translate anything! Now if you don't mind..." Seraph tried walking to the side, but Solo blocked him.

"It doesn't matter if I translated it or not. I helped you find it's origin, so you owe me your member address! And I can't take 'no' for an answer!!" Seraph sighed, gave Solo his Member Address, and walked towards the Chaos Gate. "Now, before we leave, I'm meeting up with a friend of mine."

"Who are we dragging along?!" Seraph asked. Solo shook his finger, leaning back on one of the pillars nearby. Seraph walked to the adjacent pillar to the left and leaned back on it. "Is it someone strong at least? Last time, it was a complete wuss."

"No, she's brave when it comes to battles. Hell of a fighter!"

"She..?" Seraph looked up, reminiscing of the past. After a few minutes, three gold rings appeared, revealing a small girl with a large scythe. She had purple eyes and chestnut-brown hair that was an inch above her shoulders. She was wearing purple boots that went to her knees, purple gloves with white frills at the wrist, a purple dress lined with yellow and a sun-like figure in the front, a white vest also lined with yellow over the dress, and a large purple cape held on by an orange star pendant. She had a purple hat like a renaissance artist, only with a tail hanging over her left ear, another orange star at the end. She looked around, noticed Solo, and ran to him.

"Sorry I'm late, Solo. I had some leftover homework... Who's this?" The girl looked at Seraph.Seraph chuckled, standing straight. He brushed himself off a bit.

"I'm Seraph, the Forgotten Angel. I'm a Blade Master, began playing the game again about a week ago. And you are..?"

"I'm Zanzoo. Just Zanzoo. I'm a Long Arm, been playing the game for a long time now... Whoa, wait! What do you mean, 'again'?" she asked.

"Well, let's just say my old character got deleted, so I started over." Seraph turned to Solo and nodded. Solo blinked a few times, realized what he meant, and stood up.

"By the way, the keywords are for this server. They are Hidden Forbidden Holy Ground. I heard there's some cool stuff there, like some books and information on rare items." Seraph's face went from smiling to exasperated.

"Dammit, I thought you'd given that up!!!" he yelled. Zanzoo stared at Seraph, while Solo stumbled to the ground.

"Geez!! What did ya think?! I'm too stubborn to give up on it!!!" Solo replied, also yelling.

"ENOUGH!!!!!!!!!" Zanzoo screamed. Both Solo and Seraph looked at Zanzoo timidly. "Now what's this all about?!"

"Well, when I was last here, Solo was still a Heavy Blade. Ever since I had told him of this legendary Heavy Blade weapon, he's been obsessing over it. It's a mythical sword that is hidden somewhere in the weaker servers. It's called the Gaia Zanbato," Seraph explained sourly.

"Yeah, and I have an obsession with the Zanbato, cause my favorite character from an anime uses one," Solo added.

"Oh, you mean Sagara Sanosuke? He's cool, but not as hot as Shinomori Aoshi!!" Zanzoo replied, daydreaming. Solo walked over to Zanzoo, waving his hand in her face. She didn't respond, staring off.

"Well, anyway, let's get going..." Seraph said suggestively, acting rather embarrassed. Solo shook his head and walked over to the Gate. Zanzoo, out of her daydream by then, followed. All three said the keywords and they left the Root Town.

When the rings had disappeared from in front of Seraph's face, he looked around. He was standing at the end of a bridge, one that seemed to be built as a dead-end bridge. On the other end of the bridge was a large building closely resembling a Celtic chapel, with spires, stained-glass windows, and even the doors. Behind Seraph, Solo and Zanzoo had just appeared to watch him walk towards the church. Both followed after, but Solo stopped before the steps to the entrance, looking around at a closer view.

"Wow... Sure looks like a library..." Solo said after a minute of awestruck staring. Seraph began walking into the open door, Zanzoo following. Solo looked at the doors, noticing that the other two had already strode into the building. "Hey, wait for me!" Solo yelled as he ran to catch up with Seraph. When they passed the door, they all drew their weapons. Inside, it looked as if it was abandoned for years. There were pews on the sides of an aisle that had a stone figure holding a large brass dish, which supposedly was meant to hold Holy Water. Seraph walked in further, passing the dish-figure and walking all the way to the altar, where a statue stood of a girl with very long hair and a type of gown. The girl's face was one of hopelessness, bound by chains to the walls at her sides. Zanzoo walked up, her scythe at her back.

"Poor girl. I wonder who would make something like this..." she said, breaking the long silence. Solo was looking in the pews for any papers or books.

Suddenly, the area flashed and a large monster appeared between Solo and the statue. It was dark, wearing a black cape and a dark-gray turban, wielding a large scimitar. Under the turban, two yellow sharp eyes shone. Solo looked at it and brought his sword up. The monster headed towards Seraph and Zanzoo. Before Seraph could say anything, Zanzoo sped towards the monster and slashed it with her scythe in a continuous pattern. After a few twirls, the monster fell to the ground. Then, the area flashed again, reviving the monster, which was now covered mostly in green hexagons. Zanzoo looked up in shock as the monster rose up and slammed her into the left wall. Solo charged at the monster from behind, but was slashed by its sword and knocked into the dish-figure, which shook and moved an inch toward the open doors. Seraph, whom was shaking in anger, also lunged at the beast, but stopped when he a loud ringing began to resonate in his ears. It made him think of when Mireille was attacked by the white demon and was almost killed. He dropped his sword, holding his head. The monster drew closer and closer. It lifted its sword and was ready to strike. In an instant it was blown forward. The sound withdrew, allowing Seraph to look up. He saw a man clad in blue armor, with white hair and white wings. He had a sword that was blue in the center, and silver at the edge.

"Leave now, or you will be killed." The man flew towards the monster, ready to strike. Seraph got up, grabbed his sword, and walked towards the beast. The man, slashing at the monster, was slammed against the right wall, falling in and out of consciousness. The monster drew closer, and just as it was about to kill the man, its attention was drawn towards Seraph.

"You will not kill him or anyone else!" he yelled as he searched his pockets. He pulled out the ring, put it on his right middle finger, and slashed the monster. A strange sphere surrounded it, stopping it from moving. Then Seraph sheathed his sword and held his hand out, palm facing the monster. A blue bracelet once again appeared on his wrist, growing larger. "Data Drain!!" he called out as a dispersed beam hit the monster and pulled out all of the green hexagons. The monster regained movement, but just as it had, it split in half, revealing the man behind it. The monster disappeared.

"I see now... That power... You must beoneof them..." the man sais to himself. Seraph looked down, thinking, and then looked back up. By then, Solo had limped over to them, and Zanzoo was already next to Seraph. "Are you in league with the viruses?! Answer me!!"

"No, I just found this ring in one of the fields and it gave me this ability... I didn't want it..." Seraph replied. The man sheathed his sword. "You have to believe me, Balmung!" The man turned towards Seraph.

"You knew who he was the whole time, Seraph?!" Zanzoo asked. Balmung looked surprised when he heard Seraph's name. He laughed and drew closer to Seraph.

"Well, well, I guess you came back after all. Too bad you don't have your high stats anymore! Now you're just a novice Blademaster!!" Balmung retorted in joy.

"Hey, you're a Blademaster, too. Don't knock it. And you were once a novice as well! I'm glad that I got a chance to change. You haven't changed a bit, though. Good thing..." Seraph replied, drawing his sword. "'Cause I'm gonna kick your ass again!" Balmung drew his sword and pointed it towards the ceiling.

"Let's go then!" He said, smiling gleefully. All at once, they were fighting all over the chapel, swords clanging, sweeping past one another, randomly hitting armor. Jumping over pews, cornering into walls, and even swinging around Solo and Zanzoo, they were exchanging blows, both amazingly at equal strength. Finally, they came at a standstill in front of the statue at the altar, both gritting their teeth, pushing on their swords, until they both flew back, panting. Seraph slid a few feet back and tilted over a bit. Balmung had back-flipped to keep from falling on his back. Seraph began to laugh as Balmung swore.

"I don't understand... How..?" Balmung panted.

"I bet you're wondering why my strength matches yours. I can think of three possibilities," Seraph stated, "One, it's because I have the Dogman's Sword. Two, the Data Drain has a tendency to raise a stat by a little bit. Or three, you're either holding back, or using a weaker sword." Balmung looked at his sword and sheathed it.

"You're smart, but still very cocky. Don't forget, you may have beaten me as a Wavemaster in combat, but as a Blademaster, I am champion!" He walked out of the chapel, arms crossed in thought.

Seraph sheathed his blade, and then fell back. Zanzoo ran up to Seraph and caught him; slowly sitting down, letting his head lay on her lap. "I guess... I was right on all three, but left a detail out... I was also low on health..." Seraph whispered weakly. He smiled and fell unconscious. Zanzoo lifted his head up a bit. He opened his eyes, blinked a few times, looked up and saw Zanzoo, and smiled. Zanzoo gave a puzzled look. As if in response, his smile faded and zoomed right up into standing. "I'm sorry!! I wasn't thinking straight!! Forgive me!!" he said, blushing.

"Don't worry about it..." Zanzoo replied. Solo stood there, fighting the impulse to guffaw himself to death. After a few minutes, they began to leave. "Sorry you didn't find anything about the Gaia Zanbato."

"It's okay," Solo said sadly, "At least we tried." He stopped, smiled, and almost began to laugh again. "At least I got to see something that funny!!" Instantly, A sword was at his neck, Seraph behind him.

"Be careful what you laugh at. You just might die laughing!" Seraph said evilly. Solo gulped and shook his head. Seraph sheathed his sword. "Besides, it was an accident." Zanzoo giggled a bit at Seraph's reactions to Solo. They walked out further, then Solo gated out. Zanzoo faced Seraph.

"You know, it felt strange, having your head on my lap," she told him. He began to blush.

"Well, I was kind of in a dream when that happened..." he replied, "You see, I had a girlfriend in the game and we'd ironically have little dates in the areas. It'd usually end up with me laying my head in her lap under a tree, listening to the sounds." He looked down at his hand, the ring still on his finger. He took it off and put it back into his pocket. "She was put into a coma by a thing that had the Data Drain power."

"Wow. That's what you meant when you said you didn't want it." Seraph shook his head. "What did she look like?" He looked at Zanzoo.

"Well, she had the same hair as you, only she had green eyes. She also wore a costume like yours, only a light blue color with dark green lining. She was also a Long Arm. That's why I thought I was still dreaming... But that's over with. Let's just leave." Seraph began to sweat as he gated out. Zanzoo laughed a bit and gated out as well. Meanwhile, at the top of the chapel stood a woman wearing a white cloak and a large white hat and a white visor. She was holding a white wand that had a red gem at one end surrounded by three small white rings and three prongs on the other end. She chuckled, saying, "Well, Seraph, looks as if you've become a piece to this jigsaw puzzle." She smiled as three gold rings surrounded her, leaving only a space of air where she stood.


	3. Competition

Comments: I guess you're wondering why this one is uber long and the others kinda aren't. This is because I have changed my writing style a bit since the last chapter. And I am going mad at trying to edit, adjust, augment, subtract, and change stuff in the previous two chapters, such as descriptions and other stuffs. Anyways, here is Chapter 3 of the .hackLegend of the Twilight Angel.

P.S. This story was under construction since the first .hack game came into existence, and before the crappy .hack series came out, so when reading this, forget the crappy Shugo .hack series, cause it ruins the title.

As the rings disappeared from around Seraph, the background of Mac Anu came into view. For a while he wondered why this had happened. He then tapped his foot and sighed.

"Oh, right… I can't leave this server until someone sends me a keyword in Theta…" he cocked his head to the side and scoffed, crossing his arms. "This sucks…" After returning to a standing position, he moved his head to the sides, popping his neck, and continued on to the bridge. As he crossed, a Wavemaster and a Long Arm going to where he came, talking in raised voices.

"I heard there's a newbie Blademaster kickin' butt around here!" the Wavemaster said. Seraph stopped, turned around, and quietly followed the two players.

"Yeah, I heard he's only been playing a couple of weeks and had even given Balmung a run for his money," the Long Arm added. Seraph began to smile at hearing this. The two players stopped at the chaos gate, while Seraph hid behind one of the columns.

"I heard it was a girl," the Wavemaster replied. Seraph's smile faded and he was compelled to find this woman. "Her name is Kaiya and she's always on at night. Well, I have to go get dinner ready. See ya!" The Wave master logged out along with the Long Arm. Seraph scoffed and logged out as well.

The next day, a bit later in the afternoon, Seraph logged in, arriving again in Mac Anu. This time, however, Zanzoo was waiting close to the gate, obviously waiting for him. She walked towards him and laughed.

"So you want to meet her here," she said. Seraph's face remained in its stoic form. "I guess it's because of the rumors." She moved a bit closer to him. "Or are you just lonely?" Seraph looked at Zanzoo and smiled.

"Kaiya must be a worthy opponent if she can keep up with m… uh, Balmung." Zanzoo cocked her head to the side, puzzled.

"'M'..?" she asked.

"It's nothing… Forget about it…" He looked away from Zanzoo, his eyes filling with hatred. 'Balmung… You haunt me once again. Why do you always linger around me in my mind and in this game? Why is it I am always overshadowed by your achievements?'

"Hey, what's wrong?" Zanzoo asked. Seraph's eyes returned to their calm state and he looked at her, this time seeing not Zanzoo, but the one he lost to the white demon. He smiled and laughed. "Nothing… Just thinking…"

"Well, if you think too much, you'll go crazy. C'mon, stay cool. You shouldn't spend your life thinking. Just go out and do something fun. Take a load off. Give your brain a break!" Zanzoo began to dance away from the chaos gate, leaving a smiling Seraph to follow her. As they passed over the bridge, Seraph began to loosen up and talk to Zanzoo. He kept on talking just to keep things from getting quiet as she watched him patiently. They crossed over the bridge and passed the magic shop, going toward a secluded storage space. "Is this where you're gonna meet her?"

"Yeah, this is it. A bit of privacy from the rest of the players," he replied. He was back into his stoic mood, looking off into the water. Zanzoo walked to beside him and looked off as well.

"Why is it that you're so talkative around me and yet you isolate yourself from everyone when possible?" Seraph, startled, looked at her. He then sat down on the stone ground, staring off into the water again.

"Well… As I said before, you remind me of her… And this was how I was before she was…" His face became filled with sadness. "We'd always come back here to talk by ourselves… And we'd usually meet here before going off to a new area… This was where…" He looked deeper into the water.

"You really cared for her didn't you?" Seraph stayed motionless.

"She was the first person I'd ever met in the game… She was smart, funny, and beautiful… both in 'The World' and in real life…" A single tear rolled down his emotionless face and fell into the water. "I miss her… And I hate myself for letting her get drained by that thing… I wish I had done something at least… Then it wouldn't feel as bad… But I did nothing… Nothing to help her… Nothing to save her… I'm such an idiot…" Zanzoo put her hand on his shoulder.

"Don't blame yourself. You couldn't help it. That thing is just evil all together. It is the one to blame and whoever created it deserves some of the blame as well…" She looked at Seraph's face, which was still emotionless and still.

"It doesn't matter who's made it… I couldn't stop it from getting her… And it's all my fault... It's all my damn fault... I failed her..." Zanzoo moved closer to him and leaned against him.

"Well, I know no one can replace her, but... Just come to me if you need someone to talk to..." she responded quietly. Seraph looked to his side where she leaned. His eyes suddenly became full of grief, and then he just looked away.

"Awww, how touching!" A woman was standing in the walkway towards the shops. Zanzoo sat up straight as Seraph stood slowly and faced the woman, his eyes and face returning to their stoic look. She was clad in dark blue armor that covered her entire body, except for her arms and her calves, which were covered by a pair of dark brown boots. She had a large sword in hand and was smiling at the two. She had azure blue eyes and had brown, straight hair that went down to her shoulders. Against her pale skin, the hair gave a sense of elegance about her. She walked towards Seraph, still smiling. Zanzoo stood up and walked next to Seraph. As she looked at the woman, Zanzoo noticed that she was an inch or two taller than this woman. "Such a beautiful thing, a couple wishing to be alone." The woman giggled. Seraph stepped a bit a ways from Zanzoo in response. The woman walked up to Seraph. "You wanted to see me?" she asked exuberantly.

"Wait a second. Are you Kaiya!" Zanzoo asked in surprise.

"You guessed it! Kudos for you!" Kaiya replied. As she giggled, Seraph walked past her, heading out of the area. He stopped and turned to Kaiya.

"Delta Hidden Passionate Aqua Field. Two hours. Be there..." he declared coldly and logged out.

Seraph returned to Mac Anu an hour later, looking around. He repeated the e-mail over and over in his head. 'Please meet me at the gate at 9 o' clock. I want to talk about something important.' He scoffed and walked over to one of the pillars, then after getting the e-mail out of his mind, he leaned against it. "So, what was so important... I wonder..."

"Why? Why are you doing this?" Zanzoo's voice came from the other side of the pillar. She was leaning against the opposite side, her scythe resting next to her. "I wanted to know before anything happened..."

"I must prove it. To myself... and to my brother..." he replied.

"Prove what? Your strength!"

"Yes. I have always been in the shadow of my brother. I could never come close to being better than him in anything... until I came here... As a Wavemaster, I finally surpassed him." A strong silence ensued for a few minutes. Zanzoo broke the silence when she stood up and grabbed her scythe, standing it on the ground to her right.

"So, where is your brother?" she asked.

"Somewhere in the game, fighting for justice... That kind of garbage." He replied, standing as well. He faced the chaos gate and moved towards it. Almost halfway to it, Zanzoo ran to in front of him.

"Seraph, wait! I..." Seraph shook his head and passed her, moving to the gate.

"It wasn't anything... It was not of you..." He looked at her. "That was the old 'me'..." As he looked at her, he saw the silent tears rolling down her cheeks. He faced the chaos gate again. "Don't e-mail me anymore. Keep your distance from me." Seraph was then surrounded by the rings, hearing only an uttered cry as he logged out.

An hour later, Seraph appeared in Delta Hidden Passionate Aqua Field. He looked around at the green plains and blue sky. The sky was filled with clouds and a large airship was floating by. Seraph looked back down at his surroundings on the ground. There were many rock walls in the area, some forming arches large enough for a giant to crawl through. Beside some of the walls were tall bamboo towers topped with violet-blue flames. Suddenly a goblin ran out from behind one of the towers, Kaiya following short after. The goblin ran around in small circles, shortening the distance between it and Seraph. As it closed in on him, Seraph readied his sword. However, as soon as it got to five feet away from him, it stopped and fell over. Then the goblin dissolved into a few lines of 1s and 0s. Seraph scoffed as Kaiya slowly ran next to the spot.

"So, did you want a fight or what!" she asked playfully, a smile on her face. Seraph bent over and picked up a small rock and threw it onto the place where the goblin died. The rock dissolved into 1s and 0s as well.

"A death panel... A data sieve that will immediately sort the binary code out of data. Transfigured and coded correctly in the game, it becomes a death spot to where if anything consisting of binary data in any part is destroyed. Enemy or friend, they all are deleted." Kaiya's smile faded and her eyes gave the impression of surprise. Seraph scoffed again and walked up to her, standing a few of feet away from her face. "So you used hacking to defeat Balmung... Heh... What a cheap way to win!"

"And what makes you so smart on the subject, huh? Seraph the Forgotten – no, the 'Guardian Angel'?" As soon as she finished her sentence, Seraph had his sword up to her throat, him a foot closer.

"That is the old 'me'... before what happened to me happened. If you dare call me by that name again..." He moved the sword tip down to her heart. "You'll lose your character. And I'll lock you out of further log-ins. Of course, you never save, do you?" He sheathed his sword and walked few feet in the direction of the tower that the goblin hid behind before. His right hand was to his side, fingers fiddling around. "You have been playing inside the game for two weeks straight without saving. This is because your computer caught a virus that deletes specific files once they are created, mostly save states and quest files. You use a cloak to hide your character when you're away from the terminal. You use death panels to defeat monsters and heighten your stats in order to keep up with enemies, including Balmung – catch me if I'm wrong on anything!" Kaiya stared at him, her face filled with horror and shock.

"How... How did..." she began to ask. He walked over, his left hand resting on his sword's hilt.

"You left a lot of bread crumbs to follow. You know a few tricks, but you're not a real hacker, just a cheat."

"What about you! Wouldn't you use your hacks to defeat Balmung of the Azure Sky!"

"No. Because I must defeat him with my own strength! I must prove that I am better than my brother!" He swung his right arm to his sword and he drew it, swinging for Kaiya. She was flung into a wall behind her, caught off guard.

"Why must you defeat Balmung and not your brother!" She said as she drew her blade and rammed it into Seraph's sword. Both were face-to-face, blades crossed.

"If I defeat Balmung, then my brother will know that I am stronger than he is!" The two began to circle, swords still crossed.

"Well, then, I guess I'll disprove that!" Kaiya yelled as she ran Seraph into the same wall she was slammed into, this time shattering it. Seraph fell onto his back, panting. "See? I can use my strength very easily!" She ran ahead and lifted her sword, ready to slam down. Seraph sat up and sheathed his sword. As Kaiya's blade came down, he rolled away, unknowingly headed for the death panel. When her blade came down, it stuck into the earth, throwing Kaiya off a bit. After a minute of regaining her composure, she pulled the sword from the ground and ran for Seraph. "Where's all of your talk now!" As she ran, Seraph stood up and readied himself. As she got closer, he dodged to his right, sliding a bit. Overwhelmed by her strength, Kaiya clumsily tripped over and began to fall.

"I don't need to cheat to win. Not like you!" Seraph looked as Kaiya screamed, falling for the panel. "Dammit..." He swung his left leg behind him and, pushing hard into the ground with it, flung himself into Kaiya, knocking her away from the panel. "And I can't just neglect a person in danger. However..." He got up, and while Kaiya was on the ground, drew his sword and pointed it at her throat. "In your case, I am willing to make an exception!"

"Wait! I can... I can help you out! Besides, I can't save! Please!" she pleaded. Seraph remained still for a short while. He then scoffed which changed to a light chuckle and became a long laugh. He sheathed his sword and walked over to the death panel. As he fidgeted his right hand's fingers, the panel dissipated into 1s and 0s and completely disappeared. Surprised, Kaiya got up and brushed herself off.

"You live in Tokyo, right?" Seraph asked. Kaiya looked at him quizzically. "Shut down your computer and let it cool off. Don't worry about your character. After it cools off, send me your home address. I can take it apart and look at it for you." He turned his head and looked at Kaiya, smiling. "If I am to be my old self one last time, it may as well be now." Seraph gated out of the field, leaving behind a confused Kaiya, who gated out a few seconds after. A strange silence ensues as bits of the area's texture deteriorated into nothing.

Solo jumped out of a passing gondola and onto a small landing next to the bridge. He looked ahead at Mac Anu's Weapons' Shop.

"Now to get me a new sword!" As Solo walked towards the shop, he looked towards the bridge and saw Seraph crossing over. "Hey... Hey!" Solo yelled. Seraph didn't flinch, still moving. Solo ran up the steps and crossed the bridge, in pursuit. Finally, Seraph stopped at the chaos gate. Solo caught up to him, panting. "Just who I need to see! There's a reply to your topic on the message board." Waiting for a reply from Seraph, Solo stood still. After a few seconds of silence, he growled and continued. " 'The player called Kaiya, rumored to have beaten Balmung of the Azure Sky, has been exposed for hacking her stats and will be punished for her actions. These actions, however, have been deemed independent of all outside influences. She is to remain under surveillance in case such an incident occurs again.'... It was typed by Helba." Seraph spun around and faced Solo, shocked.

"Helba! Are you sure!"

"Yup. None other." Solo replied. After watching Seraph's shocked face, Solo yawned and stretched his arms out. "Well, I gotta go. School stuff. Laters!" Solo ran to the chaos gate and disappeared behind the rings. Seraph stood still, looking around.

"Why..? That compromises your location and IP... Are you calling to me again..?" After a minute of silence, he slowly walked towards the chaos gate and logged out.


	4. Repercussions

The sky appeared clear and blue amongst the gray mountains of Dun Lorieag. Amongst the open wind were many different kites tied down to the summits of the mountains that were spread amongst the low-laying clouds that hid away the world below. Amongst the mountainsides was the Root Town, connected by a web of wooden bridges and paths. At the southern end was a square stone platform surrounded by a small trench of water. Across the water, on each corner, stood tall, thick ten-foot-tall pillars. In the center of the large platform was the endlessly swinging chaos gate.

Leaning against one of the pillars near the path was Solange. Her staff was lying on the ground next to her feet. She was peering at the vacant sky above, her red eyes wandering through thoughts. Suddenly, a trio of golden rings revealed the robed Solo. He headed to the path when Solange picked up her staff and ran to hi, following.

"So you got the e-mail, too?" She asked. Solo nodded slightly.

"Yeah... But why here?" Solo slowed down, looking to the sides. Solange stopped and looked at him, confused. "Hm."

"What's wrong? You okay?"

"Behind us… Don't look." Solange turned her head back, almost looking. "They're Cerulean Knights... I think they know why we're here," Solo whispered as he slowly continued. Behind them, sure enough, was a group of silver-clad knights following from a distance. "We'll split up and log out. No need to risk more than we need to."

"What if they keep on following? And who would tell them about this?" Solange whispered back.

"They can't follow us for very long. It could be considered stalking. And I have an idea as to who exactly tipped them off." Solo turned left and stopped. He then looked back at Solange, speaking at a normal volume. "See you later." In seconds, Solo disappeared, logging out. Solange faced the gate. The knights were gone from their pursuit and the entire Root Town for that matter.

"It wasn't me... Maybe it was Solo?" Confused, Solange logged out.

- - - - - - - - - - - - -

Zanzoo was sitting in the small storage space behind the shops, thinking back to what had happened just a few days ago between Seraph and she. As she looked into the water, a shadow loomed behind her.

"Excuse me." A voice spoke down to Zanzoo, making her look back and stand up. The shadow was made by a man wearing blue clothing and clad in silver armor, boots, and gauntlets.

"What do you want?" Zanzoo asked, knowing what exactly the man was: a Cerulean Knight. The knight stared at her with a cold look in his eyes.

"It has come to our attention that you are associated with the player Seraph," the knight replied. Zanzoo's eyes widened and she turned, looking down at the water. Waiting for a response, the knight added, "Are you affiliated with this player?" Zanzoo thought back to what Seraph had told her: _"Don't e-mail me anymore. Keep your distance from me."_ She looked at the knight, a hint of annoyance flaring in her look. Her fist clenched around her scythe, which leaned forward at the knight incidentally.

"Why would I associate with such a self-centered, antisocial, egotistical son of a--!" The knight interrupted her, back away.

"Uhhh... A-all right... W-w-well, th-thank you for your time." The knight turned and ran off, screaming silently. Zanzoo lowered the scythe, sighing away her annoyance and returning to her spot, sitting back down. After some silence, she brought her knees up to her body and wrapped her arms around them.

"Why do I care..?" She lowered her head a bit. "But that day... He looked so sad and distant..." She laid her forehead on her knees. "What should I do?"

"No one can ever tell you the answer to that question." Only lifting her head, Zanzoo gasped as she heard the voice of Balmung, surprisingly. The tall knight walked toward the water and stopped next to Zanzoo, remaining on his feet. "I told you before... That if you needed someone to..." Zanzoo shook her head, staring into the water, looking at Balmung's reflection.

"I already told you. It won't work out because we just never... Got along." Zanzoo turned her head and looked at him. "Besides, you never told the truth about yourself. You're four years older than me and you failed to mention that even though I told you how old I was," Zanzoo added in, glaring into Balmung's cold eyes, hers filled with emotion. After a minute of silence, Balmung scoffed and turned around. Zanzoo looked back at the water.

"Hidden Forbidden Holy Ground." She looked back at Balmung as he said the area keywords. "That's where he is. You should go to him." He started walking off. "He is only three years younger than me." He kept on walking as he logged out. Zanzoo got up and walked towards the bridge, slowly gaining speed, half surprised and half overjoyed.

- - - - - - - - - - - - -

"I get the feeling... It was you." Seraph said to himself. He was inside the chapel at Hidden Forbidden Holy Ground, looking at the statue of the girl bound in chains. "Were you the one who saved me?" He looked down at his hand, the ring resting in his palm. It gleamed in the sunlight shining from the stained glass windows. "And you told me to use it... To save them." A small creak sounded from the back of the chapel. Seraph slid the ring into his pocket and swiftly, yet quietly, dashed into the shadows, hiding from view. The doors opened slowly, revealing a silhouette of a player. As the player stepped forward, moving closer to the altar, the details became clear and obvious. It was a Cerulean Knight observing the chapel. The knight stopped in front of the altar and turned his back to the shadows. Seraph ran out of the shadows and grabbed the knight's arms, holding them behind his back with his left hand, holding his sword up to the knight's throat with his right.

Seraph leaned his head forward, speaking in a higher-pitched, childish voice, "So, are you here for information or are you just a strong player?"

"Sora? Since when did you--?" The knight was cut short as Seraph ran the blade across his throat. He fell to the floor, fading out. Seraph put his sword away and sighed.

"How easily a knight can be duped. Sora has been in a coma for weeks," he commented in his normal voice. He headed to the large doorway as the knight disappeared. After stepping out of the church and stopping before the steps, he smiled and lowered his head. "He would have gotten in the way, little lady." He turned and was greeted by the persona of Helba before him, her arms at her sides.

"Indeed. You attract danger wherever you go now." Helba slowly moved closer to Seraph as he turned around. "However, your prowess in hacking allows you a great deal of security. Though..."

"It doesn't mean I'm completely safe, little lady." Helba laughed at what Seraph was calling her, though she was a bit taller than him.

"I've grown up since last we met."

"No doubt... But now the student has surpassed the master." Helba smiled at his comment.

"Only in your eyes, for the master has yet to show the real abilities."

"I only hope they never need to be used," Seraph scoffed and looked into the sky. "You could have blown your cover by posting on the message board. Hell, you pretty much toed the line. Why'd you do it, Helba?"

"In order to secure a meeting. You got the message, didn't you?"

"'Shinobi find the hidden meanings within the hidden meanings,'... But apparently so did a Cerulean knight, or the first part anyways." He looked around and sighed. "Not a very secure drop point."

"Sometimes you must sacrifice in order to gain. Besides, it gets interesting to make them think they have the mouse by the tail." Helba smiled, bowed to Seraph and gated out. He sighed and turned to the steps, looking at the emptiness beyond the stone walkway.

"Well... I guess it does," Seraph chuckled and gated out as well. After a short wait, Zanzoo looks from the church doors and walks towards the steps.

"Helba? But how does she know Seraph? And what did he mean by 'master'?" She stood there for a while, pondering on the subject, eventually shrugging and gating out.

- - - - - - - - - - - - -

Solange was in Dun Lorieag yet again. She was lying down on a small grassy outcropping. Her wand was lying a few feet from her, the golden tip pointing at her. Her eyes were open, watching the clouds roll by, passing through the multitude of kites, a slight breeze changing there color every so often.

"'Where the sky is forever colored by a rainbow of silk'... This is the place, but what exactly would Seraph want with me?" She closed her eyes and sighed. As she opened them again, she saw Helba's face looking down on her. Solange, startled, sat up quickly and shook her head. She looked back and saw only a small scroll lying next to her wand. She got up and grabbed the scroll, opening it and reading it. After she closed it, the scroll disappeared and Solange backed up a bit, seeing it fade. She grabbed her staff, now acting very happy, and ran over to the chaos gate. "It must have a rare item! Maybe just like Seraph's item!" Stopping at the gate, she disappeared behind three golden rings, heading to the area.

"So she did notice." Balmung was leaning against a nearby pillar, out of view from anyone at the gate. "He has changed too much. It is such a brutal way to get a point across though." He lowered his head, closing his eyes. "No choice, I guess." He stood from his lean, looking at the sky, the prelude of a twilight gleaming in the west. He sighed, walking towards the chaos gate, and logged out.


	5. Conflict

Author's Note: This story's title, Legend of the Twilight Angel, was thought up from out of the blue. I recently learned that another story by someone else has the same title and it made me laugh about such coincidence. Anyways, this is to clarify that I have not, in any way, intentionally copied the other Twilight Angel story. With that said, here is the greatly-anticipated 6th chapter of Legend of the Twilight Angel.

The sun was just rising, shedding light upon the grassy ledges of Dun Lorieag. On one of the more secluded areas lay Seraph, his blade far from his reach as he leaned back on the side of the rock behind him. He held his hands behind his head, sleeping oddly enough. A slight wind picked up in the silence of the morning as someone appeared near the Chaos Gate and looked about, seeing Seraph and running towards his direction. The player stood above him, leaning forward.

"Seraph? Are you really asleep?" the player asked, the response being a mere scoff.

"I was," he replied, opening one eye slowly. As his vision adjusted, he saw the familiar green robes and sighed. "How many times do I have to say it, Solo? 'I kill people who wake me up.'"

"But this is serious!" Seraph opened his other eye and lowered his arms, waiting for Solo to continue. "It's about Solange. She's disappeared. She isn't answering my emails or any of my calls." Seraph's eyebrow rose a bit, but went back down as he sighed again.

"She's probably just sleeping like I was," he replied with a hint of annoyance, "If anything really happened, I'm sure she'll be fine." Solo looked at him in disbelief as he rolled to the side, closing his eyes.

"But come on! She's your friend, Seraph!"

"I never made her a friend!" he yelled. Solo backed up a bit, startled. Seraph turned his head, glaring at him. "She can handle herself. And even if she can't... Well, she'll just get a game over." He turned back and closed his eyes again, trying to sleep. Solo's panicked face shifted as he gritted his teeth, growling.

"So you're just gonna lie here! You won't even act like you want to save her!" he yelled to Seraph, making sure he heard. Seraph remained still and quiet as Solo continued. "I see. So Balmung was right. You aren't the old Seraph!" Seraph turned over and stood up, walking to right in front of Solo, glaring.

"You're damn right. I am not the weakling I was before. I am much stronger." He then grabbed his sword and walked back to the spot where he was sleeping, and lay on the ground, his sword in front of him as he turned onto his right side. Solo shook his head and disappeared, logging out. "That's right. I am much stronger. So I don't need friends to accomplish my goals."

"He was being such a jerk about it, too!" Solo ranted on, talking with Zanzoo. She was listening reluctantly, leaning against the railing of the bridge in Mac Anu. "He acted all tough and was like, 'I am not the weakling I was before. I am much stronger,'" he quoted, mocking Seraph's voice. Zanzoo sighed, looking away. "Hey, did you even hear me?" She turned to Solo, looking a bit sad.

"Huh? Oh... Yeah. I heard." Solo stayed quiet for some time before talking again.

"I still don't see why you're so keyed up about him. He's such an ass," he looked at Zanzoo, who was still looking away. "Look, if you really want to, he's in Dun Lorieag. Go talk to him." She looked at Solo again, but now with a surprised look.

"But..." she looked down at her feet. "He told me to stay away and I should respect his wishes."

"Argh!" Solo scratched his head, aggravated. "But is it what you wish? What is it that you want?" Zanzoo didn't respond. "Forget this. I'm gonna go hunt down Balmung. Maybe he can help out." Solo logged out, leaving Zanzoo by herself. She turned and looked down at the waters below.

"I want... I want him to be happy."

"Then you should go see him." Helba was standing in front of Zanzoo suddenly, smiling down at her. Shocked, Zanzoo jumped, sliding a bit on the bridge.

"Just who are you anyways?" she asked, regaining her composure.

"A mere meddler; one who has thrown quite a skipping stone."

"What? What exactly do you mean?"

"He has only been happy whenever you're around. You should go see him. You could be the only one able to move him from his place." She bowed down and logged out. Zanzoo sighed, confused, and looked towards the Chaos Gate.

"Maybe I should..." she said, hesitating. She slowly walked off the bridge towards the Chaos Gate, going to Dun Lorieag. As she reappeared near the server's gate, Zanzoo looked to her left and saw Seraph lying asleep on the cliff. She slowly made her way to the cliff, stopping a few feet from him, afraid of how he'd react.

"I told you to stay away from me," he said just before Zanzoo was ready to speak. She looked to the side sadly, losing her words.

"Yeah... But I wanted to..." she stopped herself and shook her head. "Solo tells me that one of your friends is trapped in a dungeon on this server. Why won't you go save her?"

"She isn't a friend... Merely an acquaintance. It's no big deal. She'll just have a game over." Zanzoo looked down at him in shock as he spoke. "What? Did I surprise you?"

"No. He was right. You are just a big jerk now." Seraph turned over and looked up at Zanzoo, who now had a look of disgust that was digging into him. "He told me how you always kept everyone together and made sure no one was left behind... Back when you were a Wavemaster." He turned away from her again, sighing.

"Them's the breaks. You gotta act tough or you'll end up crying in the end," he commented as he stood up. "It's obvious I won't get much sleep," he turned as he continued, "So I'll just--" Seraph was cut off by a swift, sharp pain in his cheek. He looked at Zanzoo and saw her outstretched hand flung across. "And what was that for?"

"For thinking you needed to be all alone to be stronger," her eyes filled up with tears as she spoke, "And for not going out there and helping a friend." She turned and started walking away. "In case you were wondering..." she stopped walking and finished, "Helba told me to come." She immediately logged out. Seraph stared off with a look of bewilderment.

"Helba? But... Why? What could she possibly gain from sending them here?" he asked himself as he turned and sat on the ground, peering out into the distance. "What is your motive? Are you trying to tell me something?" Seraph thought for a moment and sighed. "I don't get it."

"Someone of your intelligence should understand something so simple." Seraph turned his head, seeing Balmung standing where Zanzoo logged out. "You're supposed to go and save her. It's what you want to do."

"No it isn't," Seraph replied as he turned again. "I don't care what happens to anyone else."

"And yet you do." Balmung walked towards him. "You distance yourself from all others, thinking that maybe then they won't get hurt whenever you find that thing; that demon." Seraph gave no reply as Balmung continued to draw closer. "Whatever happened to the Guardian Angel? What happened to the Seraph who was truly noble and brave, always looking out for others?"

"I couldn't protect them, so--"

"You mean her!" Balmung exclaimed as he stood in front of Seraph, watching him look at the ground. "You regret not being able to save someone in a situation that you had absolutely no control over. You're beating yourself up for all of the wrong reasons!" He drew his sword and held it under Seraph's chin, Seraph himself not flinching. "You really think you can do this on your own? Find the thing that put her into a coma and destroy it all by yourself?" Seraph stood up, pushing Balmung's sword away.

"Yes. If it means no one else will get involved, then I'll find a way." Balmung laughed at his comment and walked around him.

"You are an idiot. You have already gotten others involved in this little grudge of yours. You just don't seem to notice the effect of your actions." He stopped and turned his head slightly, peering back. "You may not realize it, but your inaction has also affected those around you; Solange especially." He faced forward again. "I wonder how she'd react if she heard that her Guardian Angel didn't even think of helping her." Seraph turned to look at Balmung, immediately turning away again as if ignoring his own instincts.

"It doesn't matter. I am not the Guardian Angel anymore."

"No... Of course not." Balmung stepped forward and sighed. "It's time to prove that I'm the better man then." Seraph's head turned suddenly, his eyes widened.

"What did you say..?"

"I said 'It's time to prove that I'm the better man.'" Seraph's hands clenched into fists "Because the fact that you're staying here and not going to help her just further proves the point that you are weaker than me. By your inaction, you are making yourself lower than me on the totem pole. It means that I'll have proof of you being no stronger than a bug." Balmung looked back at Seraph again. He was growling through gritted teeth, one hand balled into a fist and the other gripping his sword. "Just as I thought. If you really want to prove that you're stronger, then be stronger: go save her, because if you won't do anything, I will." He walked off and disappeared, leaving Seraph by himself.

"I..." he spoke as his grip on his sword loosened, Blamung's words finally sinking in. "I am not..." He stood silently as he thought back to an old memory from before he ran into the white monster.

Seraph, in a long blue cloak and light blue hair, was standing under a tree in one of the many grassland fields. Next to him was a blonde girl in a white kimono-like dress, holding a spear against her shoulder. Seraph sighed, smiling.

"I guess you just being here is enough to calm me down." The girl looked at Seraph and smiled.

"Had another fight with your brother, huh?" she asked.

"Yeah. He always says I'm weak and that I'll never amount to anything." The girl giggled, shaking her head. "What? What's so funny?"

"And you let that get to you?" she asked, still giggling.

"I can't stand it. For once, I'd like to just kick his ass."

"You will, Seraph. You know why?" she turned and smiled at him. "Because I'll be there... And all of your friends will be there to support you. Your strength isn't dependent on your own self, but on how much faith others have in you."

Seraph looked down at his empty hand sadly. "Is that really true? But..." he looked up at the sky, "What if they get hurt all because of me?" He remained quiet, as if looking for an answer amongst the clouds. Sighing, he closed his eyes. "Email? ... So, she thinks I'll go..." He walks towards the Chaos Gate slowly. "Well, why would I let Balmung think he's better?" He lifted up his blade and gated to a vast grassland field. The ground and sky were fragmented into bits of data in many areas. It almost looked as if the images had been broken down by a virus of some sorts. Seraph looked for the dungeon silently. "The map says it's over there, but I don't see any monsters on the field. Something's wrong here." He drew his sword and began running towards the dungeon. "No time. I have to get there before something happens."

Solange woke up slowly, finding herself in a large room inside the dungeon. All around her the walls were slowly being broken down. She got up and looked at the room, a fearful glint in her eyes.

"Oh no. This time something bad happened," she said as she stepped away from the walls. As she stepped back a large monster appeared behind her. It growled down at Solange as she turned, peering at the large beast. "Stay back!" A large flame dropped down on the monster, burning its skin. As it fell down, the area flashed and what looked like a bunch of green hexagons appeared all over it. "No... Seraph." The monster shrieked and turned around, looking behind it. Solange looked in the same direction. "Seraph?" A figure in blue armor was standing on the other side.

"Just who the heck are you!" It was Balmung, his sword drawn and ready to strike again. "You picked one hell of a field. This place has been taken over by a data bug!" He ran towards the monster and slashed into its side, sliding next to Solange. The monster turned towards them, unmoved by the attack.

"It has Infinite HP!" she yelled, holding her staff up to her body. Balmung grunted and dashed at the monster again, being blown back by its strike. He slammed against the wall and fell forward onto his hands and knees. "Hey!"

"Dammit. How am I supposed to fight this thing?" Balmung glared up at the monster as it drew closer.

"Get rid of the infection, of course!" A large blade slashed into the monster's side, the player speaking jumping to the side. "I'm surprised a man of your caliber couldn't figure out such a riddle." Solange smiled at seeing the familiar black clothing.

"Seraph! You're here!" He grinned in response and glared at the monster. "That thing has an HP that's infinite! Be careful!"

"Of course," he said and pulled out the ring from his pocket, sliding it on his finger and lifting up his right hand, the bracelet appearing around his wrist. "Data Drain!" A large beam shot from Seraph's hand and shot through the monster, the data bugs breaking off of it and drawn into his hand by the bracelet. After the bugs were completely removed, Seraph fell to the ground, holding his right hand and gritting his teeth. Balmung swung his blade into the monster, immediately dispatching it. He turned to Seraph, slightly confused. Solange ran over to him and got on her knees, putting her hands on his shoulders.

"Are you okay? What's wrong?" she asked worriedly. Seraph lifted his head and grinned.

"Yeah. I'm fine. It's just the stupid ring," he said as he slid the ring off and put it back in his pocket. He stood slowly with some help from Solange. He looked over at Balmung and smiled. "So, who's the better man?"

"What are you talking about?" Balmung asked and walked past the two. Seraph watched him, equally confused.

"What _are_ you talking about anyways?" Solange asked, looking up at him worriedly. In reply, Seraph sighed, chuckling.

"Nothing. I guess I was just imagining it." He looked at Solange and smiled. "I bet you weren't expecting me to come." She shook her head, leaning against Seraph.

"No. I wanted you to be here." He looked at her silently, surprised. Seraph started walking, Solange right next to him, heading out of the dungeon. "I'm sorry I made you come all the way out here just to save me." She said as they exited the dungeon and walked onto the field.

"It's okay. It was a much-needed wake-up call." He let go of Solange slowly. "But now I have to go save and take care of some things." Solange nodded, smiling. "See you later. Just give me a call if you need me." Seraph gated out with a grin.


End file.
